Divination, is the first single of her upcoming debut album ‘Here’. A song about the empowerment found from diving into the unknown, the song calls for us to recognise our innate, gentle inner strength and knowing.
In Sukhmani’s words, “I wanted the song to immerse listeners in mystery and magic, as though suspended weightless among the stars, feeling the beauty and complexity of our experiences with no attachment to a destination.”
Divination is the first single from your debut album, how are you feeling about releasing your first album?
Well, that’s a cracker of a question to start off with! I feel extremely excited, with a healthy side of nerves and also like I might pass out at any second! It almost doesn’t feel real, but I also feel ready to be making this step. I guess I’m feeling a little bit of everything!
How did you start your journey with music? When did you start writing songs?
My journey with playing music began when I started learning the tabla at a young age. I loved taking tabla lessons, adored the atmosphere, my classmates, and teacher, and found a lot of joy in practicing. I also grew up in Leeds, where there is an extremely diverse, exciting music scene, in a household that was constantly playing music; whether it was Sikh Kirtan, Indian classical music, popular radio, Qawwali, or my dad’s collection of Blondie, the Beatles, UB40, and James Brown, there was always some form of sound throughout the home.
I have written scraps of lyrics and melodies for as long as I can remember, but started writing more complete songs as part of my music course in high school. Back then it was something I found really enjoyable, but didn’t think I was that great at. I had some amazing music teachers in high school who encouraged me to sing and write at the time, but I was definitely spending a lot more time playing Tabla and percussion, and felt really happy and natural doing that. I would eventually go on to tour with bands like Ajeet, Snatam, and Jai-Jagdeesh as a tabla player/percussionist which has been so awesome!
Can you tell us about the creation process? Where did the inspiration come from?
I can say that the creation process was pretty sporadic – like, I could go for weeks without a single whiff of an idea, and then all of a sudden it just happens and there’s a song fully written and ready to go. I would write a lot of short ideas and send them to my producer, Ajeet, who would always be super encouraging which was very helpful! Whenever I was doubtful, she would remind me that this project is a celebration of everything that has come up to this moment, which is also where a lot of the inspiration came from.
I’m also really inspired by the idea of people just loving and appreciating themselves and each other a little more. I really love people in general, and when I’m talking to my friends and loved ones, I have a lot of wishes for them to be able to recognize how amazing and wonderful they are!
How did you decide to start working on your own album? What was the most challenging part for you?
I was meant to be flying out to work on a friend’s album as a percussionist, but with COVID, I didn’t end up going on the trip. I was thinking of other ways I could contribute to the project and ended up sending some songs I had recorded on my phone. Though a couple of my ideas worked for the project, the overwhelming response I was getting from the crew was, “you should really be doing this yourself!” The same message was coming from lots of people in my life but I was feeling hesitant for many different reasons; notably, not really believing I could do it. With a little more encouragement from friends, I drafted an email to Karan at Spirit Voyage, sent it a month or so after writing it, and the rest is pretty much history.
Many parts of the process were challenging; it was hard to navigate COVID, in terms of wanting to travel safely and not risk getting sick, or getting anyone else sick! It was also hard to stay inspired during lockdown, and the isolation somehow made the self-doubting voices even louder, because there wasn’t the general flow of life and interaction with others to bring you back to a sense of reality.
Has this process of giving life to your own music changed you? What is the most valuable life experience you’ve had during the production process?
I feel like giving life to my own music has been a really empowering experience. I’m sure it’s this way for others too, but it can be quite scary as there are a lot of decisions that need to be made when making music, so you can easily question yourself a lot. Your willingness to commit also has to be pretty strong. I think I’ve learned to trust my instincts, trust other people more fully and deeply (it takes an army of people to make a record!), and I’ve learned that it is possible to do things that feel out of your comfort zone!
Ajeet is the producer of this album and your dear friend of many years. How do you feel about creating your first album with your best friend? Can you share a story about your time together in the studio?
Creating an album with Ajeet was truly miraculous. Seeing her become an incredible, visionary music producer is one of the greatest joys I have experienced in our friendship! I can’t even find the right words, but she knows me so well that I can just start to describe an idea, or something I’m hearing, and she’ll not only make it happen, but she’ll take it to another level. I also felt incredibly safe in the studio with her, which is so much more important than I even realised before beginning this process.
Whenever I was recording vocals and needed a bit of inspiration, Ajeet would come up with some kind of metaphor or reference for me which was sometimes too funny to sing through, but mostly profound and helpful. She would always find the right thing to say, like “imagine you’re singing to every person who needs uplifting”, or “sing like the trees are listening,” which just lights up your imagination and gives a different approach in the moment. Then, whenever I would get a good take, she’d change the colour of the recorded track to pink, and say “that one’s PINK!” I feel like whenever I do something good now, I’ll tell myself, “Sukh, that was so pink..!”
Can you give us a sneak peak about what is next for you?
I have a couple more singles coming out, before the full EP releases in February! I am so excited to share this music with you all, and hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed creating it.